Dusk and Dawn
by Jaynaria
Summary: Collection of short stories about Cross, Zero and Akira.
_Come stop your crying_

 _It will be alright_

 _Just take my hand_

 _Hold it tight_

Zero was woken up deep in the night, by the cries of the baby in the next room. He had gotten back in the early hours of the morning and immediately collapsed against his bed. He had tiredly kicked off his shoes and socks and was looking forwards to sleeping until the sun set the next day.

Alas, that was not to be.

 _I will protect you_

 _From all around you_

 _I will be here_

 _Don't you cry_

Akira, for some reason or another, had woken himself up, and apparently Cross was too out of it to help. He had been asleep since he had confirmed the fact that his adopted son was home.

So, awake and aware, at least mildly, he went to see the child.

 _For one so small,_

 _You seem so strong_

 _My arms will hold you,_

 _Keep you safe and warm_

 _This bond between us_

 _Can't be broken_

 _I will be here_

 _Don't you cry_

Wrapping his arms around the babe in the cradle, he gently lifted him up and into his arms. Singing a song softly under his breath, he checked the child, to see what it was that made him wake in the early hours.

The small Vampire was keeping a Human schedule, if only because Cross needed to be awake to care for him.

 _'Cause you'll be in my heart_

 _Yes, you'll be in my heart_

 _From this day on_

 _Now and forever more_

The boy was dry, except his tears, and turned his head away when Zero offered her food, so it must have just been a night terror.

 _You'll be in my heart_

 _No matter what they say_

 _You'll be here in my heart, always_

Zero slid his hand between the baby's fingers and palm and the child immediately gripped him tight. Continuing the song, he allowed himself to gently sway, a soothing movement that had proved to calm Akira in the past. His voice was low, and cracked occasionally. His tiredness slowed his movements and affected his voice.

But still, he sang, clearing sleep from his eyes. In order to quiet the baby in his arms.

 _Why can't they understand the way we feel?_

 _They just don't trust what they can't explain_

 _I know we're different but deep inside us_

 _We're not that different at all_

Cradling Akira against his chest, the boy's head supported by his upper arm, he gently wrapped the baby in his blanket. It had nearly fallen off him when Zero had retrieved him from his cradle.

Still moving gently, the Ex-Human moved across the room, to a small rocking chair. He held the child gently, arms and hands supporting the near-helpless infant, and he did his best to hold him as Cross had showed him.

It was harder than it looked.

 _And you'll be in my heart_

 _Yes, you'll be in my heart_

 _From this day on_

 _Now and forever more_

Cross, in all his Mary Poppins powers, had pulled it out of no-where and placed it in the corner of the room. Zero had stopped asking.

Softly singing to the crying boy, he settled in to wait.

 _Don't listen to them_

 _'Cause what do they know?_

 _We need each other_

 _To have, to hold._

 _They'll see in time_

 _I know_

Zero gently moved the chair as he sang, and as he did, he soothed his hand through Akira's hair, doing his best to help the child calm. Considering that the baby was calmer now that he had someone he cared for near him, he was very quickly begininning to calm.

The song itself was one that Zero had unearthed from his memories. A song that both Yuki and Ichiru had loved, and had sung off-key and at the top of their lungs when they watched the movie it came from. Ichiru had often asked their mother to sing it for them as they settled in to sleep.

 _When destiny calls you_

 _You must be strong_

 _I may not be with you_

 _But you've got to hold on_

 _They'll see in time_

 _I know_

 _We'll show them together_

Dredging up the half-remembered lyrics and melody out of his memory was a lot harder than he thought it was. They were wrapped up with memories of his mother and Ichiru, of the time when he would sit with Yuki and watch the childish movies that she loved so much.

 _'Cause you'll be in my heart_

 _Believe me, you'll be in my heart_

 _I'll be there from this day on,_

 _Now and forever more_

Pain rippled through his heart as he sang, and he let his eyes slip shut, agony making the words he brought croak and become thick in his throat. He stuttered with the tune, and held the baby tighter, much to the child's delight, in his pain.

The baby was very happy to be held by his most important person, and snuggled further into his embrace, until he noticed the Hunters distress.

 _Oh, you'll be in my heart_

 _No matter what they say_

 _You'll be here in my heart, always_

 _Always_

 _I'll be with you_

 _I'll be there for you always_

 _Always and always_

 _Just look over your shoulder_

 _Just look over your shoulder_

 _Just look over your shoulder_

 _I'll be there always._

Akira had calmed gradually, and now looked up at Zero with red and puffy eyes. Sensitive to the emotions of the one who held him, he tried to return the Ex-Human's attention to him. Giving a soft coo, he squeezed the older Vampire's hand in his.

Zero opened his eyes and smiled down at the boy in his arms. Shifting the child, he pulled him up, closer to his head, and rested their foreheads together. Nuzzling his nose, he sang the next verse with more confidence, the memories returning steadily.

Giggling, the baby placed his other hand against the older beings cheeks. In the early hours of the morning, two Vampires sought comfort from each other.

Hours later, when Headmaster Cross found them, he found them together. They had fallen asleep upon the floor, curled together beneath the child's blanket. He couldn't help the smile that spread across his face at the image that the two made.

Zero was wrapped protectively around the small Pureblood, and Akira was sprawled on his back, clutching Zero's shirt and both were asleep.

Peacefully.


End file.
